Environment and roads

Skip and scaffold information

Skip licences

A skip licence is necessary when a skip is hired and placed on the highway. It will not always be feasible to hire a skip and place it on the road. The Highway Authority issues skip licences, and it seeks to maintain the safety of the public and minimise the obstruction caused by a skip. It is illegal to place a skip on the highway without permission from the Highway Authority.

Skip hire companies apply for and are granted skip licences. This is to ensure that the onus of responsibility is placed on the skip hire company to follow the rules and regulations. In Hertfordshire the charge for a skip licence is £15 for a seven day licence and a £10 charge for every additional seven day extension.

When you contact the skip company to arrange for a skip they will apply for the licence if it has to be placed on the highway. You can obtain a list of skip companies in your local telephone directory or yellow pages.

You have no automatic right to have a skip on the highway outside your home. Wherever possible the Highway Authority will ask for a skip to be placed on your land.

Your skip licence may be granted or refused after the following points are considered:

• Traffic volumes and speed of traffic on the street
  
• Visibility - does the skip cause a danger by reducing visibility?
  
• Available width of the highway
  Disruption to other road users - the site may affect pedestrian crossings, cycle lanes or bus lanes
  
• Access to premises
  
• The effect it will have on parking, and restrictions, for example yellow lines and parking meters
  
• Planned or existing roadworks
  
• Other local and specific issues, for example shopping areas at Christmas
  
• The skip owner (ie. the skip company) must have £5 million public liability insurance

The Highway Authority will usually visit the site of your skip to inspect the condition of the road/path/verge before the skip is delivered so that if the skip causes any subsequent damage, this can be fairly assessed.

Hoarding

Anyone proposing to erect or take down a building or alter or repair the outside of a building is obliged to put up a closeboarded hoarding or fence to separate the building from the street.

A covered platform and handrail should also be provided. It may have to be lit at night.